Prescott v. Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego

Case Summary

Katharine Prescott, holds a photo of her late son Kyler Prescott, in the memorial garden they created in his memory at thir home in Vista, California September 21, 2016.

On September 26, 2016, Katharine Prescott, the mother of a transgender teenage boy who was admitted into Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego (RCHSD) for inpatient care, filed a lawsuit against the hospital for discrimination against her son. Katharine is represented by Transgender Law Center, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and attorneys at Foley & Lardner LLP.

Katharine Prescott took her 14-year-old son, Kyler Prescott, to RCHSD in early April 2015 for suicidal ideation and for treatment of his serious self-inflicted injuries following an incident of transphobic harassment by his peers. The hospital discriminated against Kyler by repeatedly referring to him as a girl, traumatizing him though they were aware that he was a transgender boy and Katharine made clear several times that he must be treated as male. Twenty-four hours into his 72-hour stay, the hospital’s psychiatrist determined that despite his serious mental health issues, Kyler should be discharged early from RCHSD rather than remaining for the full 72 hours. About five weeks later, on May 18, 2015, Kyler died by suicide.

The complaint, filed in federal court in San Diego, states that RCHSD violated federal and California laws by discriminating against Kyler based on his sex (including his gender identity) and based on his disability, and that the hospital engaged in unfair and deceptive business practices by claiming that it was experienced in treating transgender patients, when in fact it discriminated against Kyler and made his condition worse.